


Day 1 – First Meeting

by moshimichi



Series: ZarcRay Week 2017 [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, ZarcRay Week 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-11
Updated: 2017-03-11
Packaged: 2018-11-21 21:34:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11366085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moshimichi/pseuds/moshimichi
Summary: Ray can’t take hearing the voices anymore. But as it turns out, she’s not as insane—or alone—as she originally thought.





	Day 1 – First Meeting

_“Where are you going?”_

Shut up.

_“You don’t look so good.”_

Shut up.

_“Yeah, your skin’s really pale.”_

_“Maybe you should sit down?”_

_“Are you okay?”_

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

_“Why won’t you talk to us, Ray?”_

“Shut up!” she shrieked. Hands flew up to clutch at her head as she fell into a crouch, tugging at long strands of hair as she did her best to block them out. Why wouldn’t they leave her alone? What did she do to deserve this?

The first time Ray had noticed them, the emotions they projected had been mere whispers. And as she got older, the ‘voices’ got louder. It hadn’t been a problem as a child. Everything was easier to accept at that age.

But being the daughter of a scientist and having a scientific,  _logical_  view of the world herself meant that soon, sooner rather than later, she started questioning. Why could she feel their hearts and emotions? Duel monsters can’t feel. Duel monsters can’t think!

Oh, she had told someone once. Ray had told her father once before.

Once had been more than enough to silence her ever since.

“You have such an imagination, Ray,” he had said. In that patronizing way adults tended to use with children, to boot. “But cards can’t feel.”

If her own father didn’t believe her, no one would. So she bottled it up and buried it deep. So deep, she could at the very least pretend they didn’t exist. But now that the solid vision system had mass incorporated into it, their emotional projection increased in strength by far. So much so that now she could hear  _words_.

Maybe she was insane. That single thought plagued her, but what else could it be?  _Duel monsters can’t feel_. It wasn’t scientific. It wasn’t  _possible_.

“Why won’t you leave me alone?” she sobbed. Tears welled up in spite of her valiant attempt to keep them at bay. Ray couldn’t take it anymore. She had ignored them for years, had persevered for so long, but they still wouldn’t leave her be. She just wanted it all to  _stop_.

“Hey, is she alright?”

_“She looks sick.”_

_“We don’t know what’s wrong.”_

_“She won’t talk to us.”_

Another strangled sob escaped her, almost choking her. The voices never listened. They  _never_  listened. Was it too much to ask for them to leave her alone? To leave and never return?

“You know, I think she just needs some space. Why don’t you go play?”

Those words gave Ray pause. Which one was that? Was one of them actually suggesting they leave her alone?

Now that she thought about it, there was something… _different_  about this one.

_“But we’re worried.”_

_“We want to talk with her.”_

_“We want to play with her.”_

“C’mon, guys, just for now. I’ll stay here with her, so why don’t you go play with my friends?”

Violet eyes widened in realization. These words weren’t being projected into her mind. This voice was a solid,  _physical_  vibration in her ears.

She wasn’t hearing things. This voice responding back to the ones in her head was  _real_.

Ray slowly looked up and locked eyes with the brightest pair of golden irises she had ever seen. Concern mixed with mild exasperation swirled in those depths. And underneath…

Underneath were disbelief, wariness, and a suppressed hope that maybe he wasn’t the only one after all.

“They never know when to take a hint, do they?” the man laughed nervously. His hands fidgeted, fingers tugging restlessly on one another. He slowly took a knee so that they were on the same level and Ray couldn’t stop staring even as he awkwardly ruffled his silver hair into a mess.

“You…” she breathed. It was almost too much. Surely this was too good to be true. “You can…?”

Those gold eyes softened in understanding. And he likely did understand. If this man was anything like her, surely he must have felt the same despair and loneliness she had. “Yeah. I can hear them, too.”

Her breath hitched, air caught in her lungs. It was too good to be true. But, please, if any deity truly existed out there,  _please_ , don’t let this be a lie.

He gave her a shy little smile, one filled with the same hope and wrenching relief Ray could feel overflowing inside her heart.

“It’s nice to meet you. My name’s Zarc.”

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on my tumblr [here.](http://moshimichi.tumblr.com/post/158279623007/day-1-first-meeting)


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